SPX Middle School
Blog
Parent-Teacher Conference
Edition
Friday, October 11th,
2019
Welcome to the Saint
Pius X Middle School Blog!
Conference time is here! We can’t wait to meet with you
next week (Oct. 15th and 17th) and share with you the
amazing things we see your children doing here at St. Pius X School! Please see
the following note about Parent-Teacher Conferences! Let us know if you have
any questions and we’d be happy to help walk you through the conference
process!
Have a Blessed day!
-The Middle School Team
A Note about P-T
Conferences:
Dear Parents,
We look forward to seeing you all at conferences next
week. Thank you to the parents who have
already signed up for a conference time.
If you have not done so yet, please signup on-line as soon as
possible. This will allows us to better
prepare for conferences.
All middle school
teachers will be in Mrs. Pedersen’s classroom for conferences.
Please go down the middle school hallway. In the hallway you will find you child’s
conference folder. Please wait in the chairs
until the group before you have finished.
We will let you know when we are ready for your conference.
Conference times with Mrs. Erickson, Mrs. Gipple, Mr. Klein,
Mr. Tallman, and Ms. Fannon or Mrs. Pedersen (whomever your child has for
Language Arts) are five minutes in length.
Below are some suggestions that will help make your conference as
meaningful as possible:
Please arrive early for your conference time. This will allow you to pick up your student’s
conference file and look at the contents before your conference begins. You can take the items from the folder to your
conference, but please put the file folder back in the file box for use at
future conferences.
Due to our busy conference schedule, we cannot hold
conferences outside your scheduled time.
Review your student’s current grades on Power School before
you come for conferences. Having knowledge
of your student’s academic standing in his or her classes will save time during
each conference.
Parents will conference in groups of up to five. Each parent has been assigned a teacher as a
starting point, and will rotate to the remaining teachers every five minutes.
You do not have to visit with every teacher, although you
are scheduled a five minute block with each of us. If you choose not to conference with a
teacher, you can wait until the group rotates to the next teacher.
Please be patient and understanding. We will work very hard to stay on time and use
the five minutes to share useful information about the progress of your
student.
We look forward to meeting with you!
The Middle School Teachers
General Middle
School Updates
1. Please join us at the following school Masses hosted
by our middle school classes this month:
-October 16th, 2019 hosted by Mr. Klein’s 6th
grade!
-November 1st, 2019 – 9am Mass hosted by the 7th
grade class!
2. Have you heard about the Middle School Virtual
Planner? Each day every middle school teacher posts homework on our virtual
planner at https://sites.google.com/stpiusxschool.org/middleschool
This is a great
way for students double-check the assignments recorded in their student
planners! We encourage parents to check the virtual planner as well to assist
their student as they complete their homework and prepare for assessments!
3. Pius Academy is available every Tuesday afternoon –
take advantage of this great opportunity to get one-on-one assistance for any
subject!
Pius Academy is offered on Tuesday afternoons from
3:00-3:45pm.
Pick-up takes place outside the front entrance of the
school (West doors) at 3:45pm.
We look forward to working with your children during Pius
Academy!
Teacher Updates
Middle School
Science with Mrs. Erickson:
As always, be sure to check the homework page for updated
test, project, and due dates: https://sites.google.com/stpiusxschool.org/middleschool
6th Grade: We have finished our discussion about designing a
controlled experiment and will have a short assessment on Monday. Today we
worked on a review. Our next unit will be about measurement and how to measure
precisely and accurately. Our assessment for measurement we will perform a lab
test with different materials around the room.
7th Grade: We just finished up our review unit on cells,
their parts, functions, and processes. We moved very quickly through this unit
as it was a review from the end of last year. Our assessment will be on Monday.
Our next unit will be about heredity. We will talk about Gregor Mendel, Punnett
Squares, and how meiosis plays into heredity.
8th Grade: We are finishing up working on density. We have
completed multiple experiments about how density is measured and affected. Our
test will be next Wednesday. From density we will move into pressure. Again,
our pressure unit will have multiple lab activities and demonstrations.
Mrs. Jaci Erickson
6th
grade and 7B Language Arts with Ms. Fannon:
6E & 6K - In writing, students are working
on sentence fluency. They will apply these skills in their personal narrative
essay. On Monday we will be learning about dialogue, and they, too, will need
to apply this to their personal narrative essay. It will be due Wednesday of
next week.
This week I met with students about their AR
goal. I showed them their grade for the first half of the trimester, and
we discussed their plan for getting their goal for the second half of the
trimester.
7 F - Students continue to work on their compare and contrast
essay. They are comparing characters in two myths that we read. We
are taking our time and working step by step on the process of essay
writing. We have been working on finding text evidence and reasoning,
thesis writing, hook, conclusion, and outlining. Students will begin
typing their essay next week. In grammar we have been focusing on phrases
and clauses.
This week I met
with students about their AR goal. I showed them their grade for the first
half of the trimester, and we discussed their plan for getting their goal for
the second half of the trimester.
6th and
7T Language Arts with Mrs. Pedersen:
7 Tallman - Students continue to work on their compare and contrast
essay. They are comparing characters in two myths that we read. We
are taking our time and working step by step on the process of essay
writing. We have been working on finding text evidence and reasoning,
thesis writing, hook, conclusion, and outlining. Students will begin
typing their essay next week. In grammar we have been focusing on phrases
and clauses.
This week I met
with students about their AR goal. I showed them their grade for the
first half of the trimester, and we discussed their plan for getting their goal
for the second half of the trimester.
8th Grade - Students have started a poetry unit. We are
reading the poem "The Road Not Taken." There are many elements
we can work on using this famous poem - imagery, symbolism, theme, extended
metaphor. Students have written a few poems. I am impressed with
what wonderful writers they are, and I enjoy their poems! In grammar we
are focusing on complements - direct object, indirect object, and predicate
nouns and adjectives. Students are learning about direct objects in
Spanish, so we are reinforcing that concept in Enlglish. Next week
students will start writing a five paragraph essay comparing and contrasting
two pieces of writing from Edgar Allan Poe.
This week I met
with students about their AR goal. I showed them their grade for the
first half of the trimester, and we discussed their plan for getting their goal
for the second half of the trimester.
I look forward to
seeing you next week for conferences.
Have a great
weekend!
Mrs. Pedersen
Math with Mrs.
Gipple:
6th Grade Math
We are finishing up our Introduction to Algebra. The
students are doing a good job understanding how letters can now represent
numbers, how to interpret operations and write equations, as well as what each
part of an equation means by using real world situations. The Posttest
for this chapter will be next Wed, Oct. 16th. Accelerated math for this
chapter will be due then also, so please check in with your child to make sure
they are keeping up on these online practices and finishing them on time.
After conference break we will start working with decimals,
reviewing the rules for each operation with decimals, and then we will
learn how they work in 1-step equations as well.
7th Grade Math
This class has finished the integers chapter and will take the
Posttest next Tuesday, Oct 15th. Accelerated Math for ch. 2 is also due
at that time.
Next up, we will review the rules of the 4 basic operations
as they apply to fractions and decimals, but now we will also implement the
rules of integers as we will have negative and positive fractions and
decimals.
7th Grade Pre-Algebra
This class will take the chapter 2 posttest Mon, Oct 14th
over integers and number properties. Accelerated Math for ch. 2 is also
due on Monday.
Then we will start working with different types of equations
and inequalities. Students will review the process of solving a 1-step
equation and then apply this process to 2-step equations, as well as
working on how to write these equations from real situations. Then we
will do the same thing, but with inequalities.
8th Grade Pre-Algebra
These students took a quiz today over equations, tables and
graphs. We will look at these quizzes next week and review the whole
chapter, then take the posttest for ch. 2 next Wed, Oct. 16th.
Accelerated Math for ch 2 is also due next Wed.
After conference break we will explore different properties
of exponents, squares and square roots, work with numbers in scientific
notation, and apply square roots by working with the Pythagorean Theorem.
8th Grade Algebra
This class completed ch. 2 yesterday by taking the
posttest. Those scores will be included in Powerschool by
Monday.
Now we switch from solving equations and proportions to
solving inequalities. The process will be the same as solving equations
but we will also work with compound inequalities and absolute value
inequalities.
I'm looking forward to visiting with each of you about how
your child is doing in math next week during conferences. Have a
wonderful weekend and stay warm!!!
Mrs. Gipple
Religion with Mr.
Tallman:
6th grade is excited to host the annual 6th
grade Omelet Breakfast this Sunday, October 13th after the 7am and
9am Masses! Please join us as we raise mony for our Fleece Blanket Service
Project!
7th grade has started their Saint Project in preparation
for the 7th grade Saint Fair on November 1st! Saint Research
is due Monday and all Saint Presentation Board Materials are due on Tuesday!
8th grade has started their study of Catholic
Social Teaching! We played the Skittle Game on Monday and are now discussing
the Christian call to serve those in need!
I pray that you all have a wonderful weekend and I look
forward to seeing you at conferences next week!
Peace,
Mr. Tallman
Social Studies
with Mr. Klein:
8th grade: We have finished
up our colony unit and will begin our next unit of study on the American
Revolution and the Declaration of Independence. During this unit, students will
be looking at primary sources from different points of view as well as reading
and interpreting the Declaration of Independence.
7th grade: Starting Monday, we will begin looking at
migration and why people move. The first week will be an introduction followed
by some case studies from various countries around the world
6th grade: We will begin working on our Climate review. The
test is scheduled for Tuesday, October 23rd. After that, we will look at
cultures of our world
